Drag Me Down
by MotoXAngels
Summary: Colby Lopez's life had taken a turn, and it wasn't for the better. His mood and emotions were caught in a downward spiral that seemed never ending. After getting injured in the ring, he is forced to the sidelines. People say that when you hit rock bottom, God will send you an Angel to pull you out, this is how Colby met his.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer - I do not own WWE or any of its characters. I only own my character Tasha and her family/friends.**

So just to help you guys out while you read this, every thing that's in bold is "in ring action, promos, text messages or social media posts", bold and italicized are "flashbacks", and italicized is "phone calls".

Reviews are appreciated, let me know what you like or don't and if you see anything spelled wrong :)

Thank you!

* * *

Colby Lopez's life had taken a turn, and it wasn't for the better. His mood and emotions were caught in a downward spiral that seemed never ending.

Two months ago he was at the top of his game, the best in his business; "The Man" as he referred to himself. He was cocky, brash, arrogant and had a chip the size of Asia on his shoulder. After his betrayal to the two men he had entered the big show with, "The Shield", imploded and his career rocketed. With the backing of the big bosses, "The Authority", he claimed the most coveted prize in WWE, the World Heavyweight Championship on March 29, 2015.

It was a defining moment in the long career of "The Architect" Seth Rollins. Cashing in his "Money In the Bank" contract on the grandest stage of them all "Wrestlemania", and walking out the Champion was the single most greatest day of his life.

Over the next 8 months he wrestled nearly 7 days a week, defending his championship in brutal matches and as some fans said, "carrying the company on his back."

But even the most skilled and in-shape athlete will eventually find their breaking point, the day where their body has reached its physical limit and something has to give. On November 4, 2015 Seth Rollins found his day.

During a live event on the first night of their overseas tour in Dublin Ireland, in a street fight match with Kane for the title, his body discovered its limit. Going for a move he had done a million times before, his right knee gave out beneath him. He had Kane on the second rope in the corner and went to Sunset Flip over him, and for whatever reason he landed on the instep of his right foot and his right knee just caved in. He felt a sharp pain, but his first instinct, as it always has been was to get back up. So he stands up and puts pressure on it and it seems fine, so he picks 330 pound Kane up and staggers across the ring delivering a power-bomb to Kane through the table in the middle.

At first he figured it simply popped, so he pushed himself to his feet and somehow managed to pick up his opponent delivering a pedigree, his finisher and covering him for the win. Afterwards he just laid there as the trainers rushed down to assist him out of the ring and backstage, no one knew the exact extent of his injury. He was taken to the hospital to have an MRI done, then he went back to his hotel to await the results. When the Doctor called, Seth Rollins' world crumbled beneath him. He had torn his MCL, ACL and meniscus. They were sending him to Birmingham to see the WWE's best surgeons.

* * *

The hardest day in his life so far came just before he was scheduled to head back to the United States for his surgery. It was the day he had to stand in front of his bosses, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, and relinquish the World Heavyweight title. As the title slipped from Seth's fingers, Triple H noticed the fear in the young man's eyes. It was a common sight when a wrestler got injured and didn't know how long they'd be out, or if they'd have a spot when they came back.

"Hey." Hunter said gently laying a hand on the kid's shoulder. "You'll be back in no time, and this title will be here ready for you to take it back. You just focus on getting better, don't worry about anything else." He looked Seth directly in the eyes, "You will always have a place here."

* * *

On November 10, 2015 Colby was admitted for surgery, his Doctor Jeffery Dugas completed the surgery in an hour and thirty minutes. He was very optimistic about Colby's chances of returning to the ring with 100% full function of his knee. He stated that his road to recovery would be around 6-9 months.

After surgery, Colby laid in his bed, still groggy from the anesthetic and spoke to the camera crew standing in his room. "Day 1. Day 1. Coming back for the title. I don't give a shit who's got that thing. Roman, Cesaro, Barrett, Sheamus, I mean… it doesn't matter, I'm coming for it. It's mine. I may not look like a champion right now, give me a few months. Whole game's gonna change man. You thought I was doing something special before, pff, you don't even know. You don't even know."

* * *

Hunter wanted to make sure that Colby had no doubts that he would still have a spot in the company when he returned. So he sent a camera crew to tag along with Colby during his recovery to document his "road back" to the ring. It would air on the WWE Network, a part of their WWE 24 series, and it would give the fans not only an in depth look at a wrestlers recovery from injury, but a glimpse into his life as well.

For the first month Colby was miserable, his knee constantly hurt, he couldn't hardly sleep or do anything he wanted to. He stayed in Birmingham for that first month to make it easier on himself, not having to fly back and forth for check-ups.

* * *

On December 14, 2015, day 35 of his road to recovery, Colby headed to the OrthoSports Center & Medical Tower for an evaluation. He spent the day trying to get used to all the new feelings in his knee, but every time something shifted or popped, he panicked. By the end of the day, he was tired, both mentally and physically.

* * *

Fast forward two weeks, December 28, 2015, day 49 of his recovery Seth Rollins returned home to Iowa. He smiled as he pulled into the driveway of his house, his family waiting to greet him.

"Colby, it's so good to see you sweetheart. I've missed you so much." His mom Holly said as she wrapped her son in a hug.

He smiled, it was times like this that he loved, when he wasn't Seth Rollins WWE Superstar. This was home, and for a little while, he could just be Colby.

The next month flew by, spending his time at home with his friends, girlfriend and puppy, just relaxing. He gave WWE a private tour of his dad's house where his wrestling passion had started. It was kinda cool to give the fans a glimpse into his past. To show them how it all began, and to see where he had made it to now.

* * *

February 4, 2016, day 87 of recovery, Colby ventured down to Moline, Illinois. He had found himself at the gym, alone, which was utterly peaceful and serene. During his time there he found out some news that hit him hard.

On February 8, 2016, he found out that his co-worker and friend Daniel Bryan was announcing his retirement on RAW due to an injury he had sustained months earlier. This sent Colby reeling, mostly because his story was so much like Daniel's. They both had a similar wrestling style, and that could have easily been Colby in his position. When you're frightened your mind can be your worst enemy, and at that time, Seth's was. He started wondering not when he would return to the ring, but if he would ever return.

On top of his worry about his injury and job, his girlfriend decided that now would be a good time to tell him that she was leaving him. Talk about kicking a man when he is down. She had never liked wrestling, never been into it, even though it was his job, so truthfully he should have seen it coming. But like most people, when you love someone, you try to look past certain aspects of them.

She had never blatantly told him she hated his job, just constantly voiced her dislike of it. She would tell him it was stupid, that if he wanted to act, he should have become an actor. Most of the time Colby just let her comments roll off of his back, paying her no mind. But since his injury, she had been more vocal about her distaste of the WWE. He had been thinking of a way to end the relationship peacefully, but luckily she had done it for him.

Instead of wallowing in self pity, Colby focused his hurt and anger into his recovery. Three months after his initial injury Colby flew down to Florida, determined to get back into the ring as soon as possible.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer - I do not own WWE or any of its characters. I only own my character Tasha and her family/friends.**

Thank you to **psion53** and **espeon44** for choosing to follow and favorite this story.

So just to help you guys out while you read this, every thing that's in bold is "in ring action, promos, text messages or social media posts", bold and italicized are "flashbacks", and italicized is "phone calls".

Reviews are appreciated, let me know what you like or don't and if you see anything spelled wrong :)

Thank you!

* * *

March 3, 2016, 115 days into recovery.

Colby strolled into the Performance Center in Orlando, he was determined to get in a full workout today. He warmed up with some stretching while the camera crew set up to catch shots of his workout. Once they were set up he started out with some kettlebell lifts, followed by some walking handstands, then upper body weight training and finally a jaunt on the stationary bike.

Colby enjoyed working out, it kept him fit and made him feel good. He was really into CrossFit, which was cardio and weight training intertwined together. His co-workers and fans had nicknamed him the "CrossFit Jesus" due to his extreme liking of it.

After his workout he had a private chat with Cena who happened to be there and had caught his workout. John assured him that he was important to the company and that there would always be a place for him. As someone who had missed plenty of time due to injuries and always had a spot when he returned, Colby appreciated Cena's assurance.

He made his way into the trainer's room to ice down his knee as it had slightly swelled up during his workout. While he was sitting propped up on the table, he was visited by Cesaro who had hurt his shoulder a month after Seth had injured his knee. The two had become good friends during their recovery, relying on one another for that positive influence.

While chatting with Cesaro, Dr. Dugas came in to check up on Colby. "What are we into it, two months?"

Colby bit his bottom lip as he held up his fingers. "Four."

Dr. Dugas nodded, he was impressed at how far Colby had come in such a short amount of time. He was equally impressed at how well his knee had healed, there was almost no visible scars. They discussed Colby's road so far, and Dugas agreed that they should send Colby in for a Biodex test.

After scheduling a time for the test Colby readied himself to head back to his hotel room. As he exited the back room he noticed that it was quiet in the training center, save for the occasional sound of a fist hitting a bag. This peaked Colby 's curiosity as it was dark in the entire center, most everyone had gone home for the night. He headed towards the sound, curious as to who would stay here this late.

He entered the main room to find a small portable lantern sitting on a stack of mats, casting a shadow on the figure in front of it. Beside the lantern was a phone, Colby could hear music coming from the speaker, but it wasn't a band he was familiar with. He stood leaning against the doorway, watching the 70lb heavy bag that was swaying from the force of the shadow's punches. As the shadow moved more into the light Colby was shocked to find that it was a woman.

She was shorter than most of the girls he had seen here, she reminded him of AJ in her height and stature. She was dressed in a black sports bra, a pair of black semi-baggy sweats and white sneakers. While she was AJ's height, around 5' 4" he guessed, he noticed she possessed more defined muscles than the former Divas Champion. Her biceps and triceps were toned, they flexed with every hit she gave the bag. Her stomach wasn't rock hard, nor did she possess a defined six-pack as some of the Divas or NXT ladies. She again reminded him of another Diva, Paige, who did not possess a six-pack stomach, but she was still in great shape. He figured that just like Paige, this girl enjoyed eating food.

Her complexion and skin tone weren't quite as light as Paige's, but he could venture to guess that she probably had some Irish in her genetics, judging from the freckles that covered her arms and smattered across her nose and cheeks. She had long dark hair, perhaps brown or black, he couldn't judge in the dark. It was long, longer than any of the Divas he knew. She had it braided, it hung down her back just brushing the top curve of her butt.

"You know stalking's illegal in the state of Florida?"

Colby perked up as he heard her voice, he hadn't made a sound, nor had she looked in his direction, but somehow she knew he was standing there.

"Sorry. I just heard the noise and was curious who was still here this late." He said as he gingerly made his way over towards her.

"I like working out late, I get the whole place to myself, nobody bugs me, I can just relax and focus."

She started hitting the bag again as Colby moved over beside the mats, leaning against them trying to alleviate some of the tension on his knee. He slightly winced as she laid a few straight punches, rocking the bag even more.

"Man, I don't know who I feel sorrier for, the bag, or whoever pissed you off."

She paused, raising a sculpted eyebrow as she began to unwrap her hands. "How often do you hit on women in the gym?"

Colby chuckled, she was smart and definitely not afraid to call him out. "Honestly, this would be the first."

"And you expect me to believe that?" She mused as she finished unwrapping her hands and began rolling the wraps back up.

"No." Colby said flatly. "Because I'm sure you're thinking I'm just like every other guy."

"And you're not?"

"Oh, no, I'm a typical guy. I say stupid stuff, put my foot in my mouth quite often. I can be a sexist jerk, and completely insensitive. But on the other hand, I'm a hopeless romantic, I do not believe in cheating and I never lie. I may be a typical guy, but my momma did raise me right."

"Well, please give your mother my sincere thanks for raising such a good man." She giggled, something which Colby found adorable.

"I will do that. So would you like to go out with me sometime?" Colby said taking a chance and hoping his luck didn't run out.

She smiled, but her sigh told him her answer before she opened her mouth. "Thank you, but, I don't date wrestlers."

"Well, technically right now, I'm not." He said with a broad smile while motioning to his knee.

She laughed, "Touché."

"Look, I respect that. What about a good friend? Or do you have enough of those?" Colby said, hope filling his voice. It was nice to find someone who could put him in his place, and clearly didn't give a damn that he was Seth 'Freaking' Rollins.

She stood there for a moment, arms crossed over her chest as her eyes met his. Then she nodded, "Yeah, I could use a good friend."

He smiled while extending his hand, "Colby."

She smiled back reaching out and grasping his hand with her small one. "Tasha."

* * *

The next day was a rough one for Colby, he had gotten up early and headed down to the University of Florida for his Biodex test. It was hard, it hurt and by the end Colby was more discouraged than he had been before. The test showed that his right leg had only 20% strength and range, which meant that he would not make it back for Wrestlemania. All of his hopes had been dashed in one afternoon, the main event that he had helped to create, he would have to miss. It was a bitter pill to swallow.

Colby was in a grouchy mood as he walked through the doors of the Performance Center. He basically growled at everyone he passed as they tried to say hello. Word spread quickly of the former champ's foul mood, and within minutes everyone was parting like the red sea and steering clear of Rollins.

After his workout and still being a grump, Colby sat in the trainer's room icing down his knee. He could see the few people in the room eyeing him warily, as if he was gonna go postal any second and massacre everyone. He debated yelling, asking them what they were all staring at, but he thought against it as he pulled on his Beats headphones and laid back to rest.

A couple songs later he felt his headphones being pulled down from his ears. He quickly opened his eyes ready to unleash a tirade of fury on whoever had interrupted him, but his bad mood instantly dissipated when he saw Tasha standing in front of him. She had on a pair of jean shorts, a white NXT tank top over a black with blue lace bra and her hair was wet, he figured she had just come from a workout.

"Come on grouchy. We're going to lunch." She said before turning and heading for the doors. She paused with her hand on the handle and turned back to him when she realized he wasn't following her. She held up her hands and gave him a raised eyebrow look. "Now."

The others in the room were watching the exchange with rapt attention, just waiting for Seth to unleash on her. Instead they were surprised when he smirked. Shaking his head as he chuckled to himself, Seth stood up and followed Tasha outside to the parking lot. She lead him over to a lifted black 4-door, long bed, F-350 diesel truck. He whistled his approval of the truck as he rounded the tailgate and opened the passenger door.

"How do I get in this thing?" He asked as he saw her already sitting in the driver's seat.

She flat out laughed as she pointed to a small handle on the inside of the frame up by the windshield. "Grab it and haul yourself up."

"Couldn't you just mount a step over here?"

"And miss seeing this?" She chuckled, "No way."

Colby flipped her off which made her laugh louder before he finally hauled himself up inside the truck. "Very nice." He commented as he settled into the light gray cloth seats.

"Thank you." She beamed, clearly proud of her truck, as she put on her seatbelt and moved the stick shift into first.

Colby was impressed that not only was her truck a manual, which not many people could drive anymore, but the fact that she drove it flawlessly. He guessed that she had probably learned how to drive in a manual and probably had several of them throughout her life so far.

"So where are we going?" He asked as he rolled down the window and leaned his arm on the door seal.

"One of my favorite places." Was all he got in return as she flipped on the radio.

Colby smiled as the sound of classic rock filled the cab. "You like classic rock?"

"Mmhmm." She nodded, "It was all my dad listened to while he would work in his garage. So when I was in there helping him, I grew to love it."

"So what else do you listen to?"

"I like a little bit of everything, not so much rap or certain hip-hop. I really like anything I can dance to, but classic rock and country are my favorites."

Colby was beginning to think there was an extra reason why she liked country. He thought about her truck which was clearly not a city vehicle, her taste in clothes which were not flashy or expensive, and the fact that she was wearing a pair of cowboy boots didn't hurt his assumption.

"You're a county girl aren't you?" Colby mused.

She shook her head, "I guess you could say that. I wasn't born in the south, but I did grow up on a ranch around horses."

He nodded, "So where did you grow up?"

"Reno, Nevada."

"So is it a party town like some people think?"

She laughed which Colby found adorable, "It used to be. But over the years things have changed. The town pretty much rolls up at about 3am, that's when most of the clubs and bars shut down."

"Well I guess that's good in a sense, then you don't have a bunch of people getting overly drunk."

"Very true." She nodded agreeing with him as she pulled the truck into a small parking lot. "Come on." She tipped her head towards the building as she jumped down out of the truck.

Colby climbed down awkwardly because of his knee, shutting the door he followed Tasha into the small café. The hostess beamed as she saw Tasha, hurrying over and enveloping her in a hug. "Hello sweetheart. How are you today?"

"I'm good Claire. How are you and Don? The grandkids?"

"Everybody is doing great, thank you for asking."

"You're welcome. Of course."

The older woman, probably in her early 50's grabbed two menus and lead the couple out onto a small patio. "Do you want your usual sweetheart?" She asked as they sat down.

"Yes please."

"What's your usual?" Colby asked curiously, and he was surprised by the lady's answer.

"A Portobello mushroom burger, topped with Swiss cheese, garlic steak fries and a Blue Moon to wash it down." Claire said as she took in the young man's shocked expression, clearly he wasn't used to a girl who could eat.

"That sounds really good, I'll have the same please." Colby smiled as he glanced up at the elder woman.

"Alright, I'll go get your drinks and be right back." Claire smiled giving Tasha an approving glance towards Colby, to which Tasha smiled and shook her head no.

Colby suddenly heard waves, he turned to his right to find they were right by the ocean. He could see people milling around on the beach and surfers in the water. It was relaxing, the sound of the waves rolling onto the shore, birds chirping as they flew by. He closed his eyes shut taking in the peacefulness of it all.

Tasha smiled as she watched Colby close his eyes, reveling in the serenity the small café provided. "Peaceful huh?"

Colby smiled as he opened his eyes and met hers. "It is. I can see why you like it here."

Claire came back with their beers, she set them down and set her attention on the young woman. "Don wanted me to let you know that he loves your idea for the backyard, you can get started on it whenever you like."

"That's great. I'll probably start on it this weekend. Please give him my thanks."

"Of course hun."

Claire walked off and Colby turned a curious eye to Tasha, "You renovating your backyard?"

"Kind of. I'm just adding a few little touches here and there." She smiled, "Maybe while you're in town, you can come check it out. I'd love another opinion."

Colby nodded, genuinely surprised she asked. "Yeah, I'd like that."

The two sat there chatting amiably about their lives, families, hopes and dreams. By the time they watched the sunset together, they felt as though they had known one another their entire life.

"I can't believe how long we sat there just talking." Colby commented as they walked back out to Tasha's truck.

"Why do you seem so surprised?" Tasha queried, not understanding his shock.

"Well, believe it or not, I haven't found many people, male or female that I have been able to hold a conversation with for 5 minutes, let alone nearly 6 hours. But with you, it comes easy and I find myself not wanting to stop."

"Yeah, same here." She smiled as they climbed back into the truck, she started it up and drove them back to the performance center. As they pulled to a stop beside Colby's car he sighed, it had been a great day spending time with Tasha, and he really didn't want to go back to his small hotel room alone.

"You okay, Colby?" Tasha asked noticing his sigh and his far away look.

He shook his head clearing his thoughts as he smiled. "Yep, I'm fine. Thank you for today. I had fun."

"Me too." She said giving him a genuine smile, as he got out of the truck she called to him. "Hey, Colby."

"Yeah?" He said turning around to face her.

"Will I see you tomorrow?"

Colby cocked his head to the side, a smile playing on his lips. "Would you like too?"

"I wouldn't hate it." She said smiling back.

He nodded, "Then I'll see you tomorrow, pretty girl."

Tasha gasped pressing a hand to her chest, "You think I'm pretty?"

Colby heard the sarcastic tone in her voice and laughed, flipping her off. "Smartass."

"Better than a dumb ass." She shot back.

Colby shut the door and waved as she pulled out of the parking lot, as he drove back to his hotel he smiled. Who would've thought that throughout all the pain and heartbreak he'd endured over the last months, he would find a true friend to help him through it. He guessed that the saying he was told as a kid was really true, "When times seem their darkest, God will send you an angel to help see you through to the light." And he was sure that Tasha was his angel.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer - I do not own WWE or any of its characters. I only own my character Tasha and her family/friends.**

Thank you to **NESSAANCALIME6913, zendall001, sourskittles6887, Lucian Arcturus Aries Black** and **raya1124** for choosing to follow and favorite this story.

And thank you to **psion53** for the first review of this story, it means a lot.

So just to help you guys out while you read this, every thing that's in bold is "in ring action, promos, text messages or social media posts", bold and italicized are "flashbacks", and italicized is "phone calls".

Reviews are appreciated, let me know what you like or don't and if you see anything spelled wrong :)

Thank you!

* * *

The next morning Colby walked into the performance center, he waved to a few of the NXT superstars that were working out. Everyone was surprised at his turn of character, yesterday he was snarling at everyone he passed, and today he was a complete 180, smiling and waving to all. They were all curious at what had caused the change, but no one had the gumption to ask.

Colby looked around for Tasha, but he couldn't see her anywhere, he felt a little disheartened that she wasn't there today. He hadn't gotten her phone number, so he had no way of getting ahold of her. He started his workout with the hopes that she would come in later, making sure not to aggravate his knee.

An hour later he had finished his workout, but still Tasha was no where to be seen. He felt a little put out, as she had said she wanted to see him today. As he started towards the showers he bumped into Sasha Banks as she came out of the locker room.

"Oh, hey, Seth. How are you doing?" The petite magenta haired woman asked him.

Colby had always liked Sasha, she was a great person and had amazing skills in the ring. "Hey, Sasha. I'm doing good. One day at a time."

"That's good. I bet you can't wait to be back in the ring."

"Yeah, bummed I'm missing Wrestlemania, but can't rush my recovery."

"Yeah, that's true. You don't want to rush and hurt yourself worse."

He nodded, "Hey, have you seen Tasha, today?"

Sasha appeared to be thinking before she replied, "Tasha? Most of us around here go by our ring names, do you know hers?"

He shook his head, "No, I don't. I'm not sure if she's a wrestler, or if she just works out here."

"Can you describe her?" Sasha asked wanting to help her friend out, she could tell that this girl meant something to Seth.

"Uh, yeah. She's about your height and weight, dark brown hair, neon blue highlights, lots of tattoos."

"Oh, you mean Bella." Sasha said quickly, she knew exactly who he was talking about, she happened to be one of her best friends.

"Bella?" Colby questioned.

"Yeah, she's an NXT Diva." Sasha said motioning for Colby to follow her. "She's training with Becky and Bayley in the ring right now, I just left them. Follow me."

Colby nodded following Sasha into the adjacent room where the practice rings were at. When they walked through the door, Sasha pointed to the ring on the opposite side of the room where he saw Tasha in the ring with the fire-haired Irish lass Becky Lynch. He walked over to the side of the ring, leaning on a stack of mats to alleviate some of the pressure on his knee.

Tasha, or Bella as she was called here, had Becky lying on the mat, she climbed to the top of the turnbuckle and stood there. Colby was amazed that she didn't seem to be balancing at all, she was just standing on the turnbuckle stock still. Every time he got up on the top of it he struggled to hold his balance until he leapt off, Tasha seemed to have the balance of a bird on a wire.

He saw her directing Becky, calling out moves and positions, he was curious what she was gonna do.

"She's been practicing a new aerial move for weeks." Sasha said leaning over to him. "She refuses to do it on someone for real until she gets it perfect. She doesn't want to chance hurting someone."

Colby nodded, he liked the fact that not only did she care about protecting herself, but she cared about the other superstars she was competing against. He heard her holler out to Becky, who rose to her feet facing the turnbuckle. He watched in amazement as Tasha leapt off the turnbuckle, wrapping her legs around Becky's neck and flipping her down to the canvas planting her on her head in a DDT.

"What the hell was that?" He mused looking over at Sasha.

"She calls it the "Poison Rose", it's a modified hurricanrana into a DDT." Sasha said as Tasha helped Becky up off of the canvas, the two women laughing and high-fiving one another.

"That's amazing, I've never seen anything like that." Colby remarked.

"Yeah, she said she wanted something that no one else had done. She likes to be different, as you can tell." Sasha smirked.

"I like that about her, she's already put me in my place and I've only known her a few days." Colby chuckled as Becky and Tasha hooked up again, practicing some Irish whips into the ropes.

Sasha nodded, "She speaks her mind that's for sure. She'll tell you exactly what she thinks and how she's feeling. So, if you don't want to know something, don't ask, Bella."

Colby nodded as he watched Tasha pin Becky for the win, he broke into a smile as he saw Tasha look over and see him standing beside Sasha. She waved at him, smiling, he gave her a wave back as she rolled out of the ring and walked over to him.

"Hey, Seth." She said giving him a hug.

"Hey." He smiled back hugging her.

" What's up, Sash?" Tasha said knocking fists with the woman.

"Not much, getting ready to head home for the day and relax. We still on for this weekend?"

"Absolutely, my backyard should be finished tomorrow, we gotta break it in."

"I'm so excited. So, I'll bring some drinks, any preference?"

"Nope, whatever you want." Tasha smiled.

Sasha nodded, "Alright girl, I'll see you on Saturday then."

"Can't wait." Tasha smiled hugging the woman before waving goodbye to her. She turned back to Colby who was smiling at her.

"That was an impressive move in there." He said nodding towards the ring.

"Thank you. I've been working on it for weeks." She admitted. "I wanted to get it just right."

"That's what Sasha said, that's good that you put that much practice into something. That's what makes a good wrestler."

Tasha nodded, "I can't wait to use it in competition, I think the fans are gonna love it."

"I think they will too." Colby nodded, cocking his head he smiled at her. "So, since we decided to go by ring names in public, what do I call you?"

"Belladonna Rose, or Bella for short." She smiled.

He nodded, rolling it around on his tongue. "Belladonna Rose. How'd you come up with that?"

"Well, a friend of mine calls me Belle, from Beauty & the Beast, it's my favorite Disney movie. I didn't want to go by that, because that's his nickname for me, so I thought about Bella. But, I didn't want to sound like a prissy girl, I wanted something tough, so I came up with Belladonna Rose. Bella, is a nod to my friend and Rose is a nod to my favorite movie. It's a little bit nice, but a little bit tough."

"Isn't Belladonna a kind of poison too?" Colby asked.

She nodded, "Yep, it is."

"Belladonna Rose, deadly poison and a beautiful flower, the right mix of dangerous beauty."

"Deadly and beautiful." She smirked, very pleased that he thought it was a good name.

"So, I'm all done working out for the day. Would you like to go do something?"

"Actually, I'm supposed to go home and see how the backyard is turning out." She said noticing the way his smile fell, so she asked, "Would you like to come with me? You did say you'd give me a second opinion."

And just like that his bright smile returned, "I'd love too."

"Awesome. Let me go take a quick shower and I'll meet you outside?"

"Okay." Colby said as she went into the locker room. True to her word, she took a quick shower, joining him outside just ten minutes later. He got into his rental car and followed her through town to a small neighborhood right by the ocean. He parked in the driveway beside Tasha's truck, getting out he looked at the house.

It was a nice two story white with light blue trim, a two car garage and a large front yard. He followed Tasha through the front door, looking around he noticed that it was very clean and simple.

"So, you want the tour?" Tasha asked.

"Of course." Colby nodded.

Smiling Tasha joined him at the front door, "Okay so to your right is the dining room, living room to the left, kitchen is straight in front of you. There are two bedrooms and a full bathroom down that hall to the left. Upstairs is the master bedroom, another small room that I turned into my office, and a balcony that runs the length of upstairs." She took him outside onto the back deck, he noticed right away that the backyard was lower than the house. "So this is the patio, there's a hot tub under that gazebo to your right, a grill to your left inside of that rock enclosure. Down the stairs to the left is where they're building a sitting area, which will have a fire pit in the center. And over to the right next to the fence is the pool."

"This is amazing, it's beautiful, Tasha." Colby said looking around in amazement.

"Thank you." She said beaming proudly.

"So, how did you find this place?"

"Well, I have was having lunch at that restaurant, I was looking through the want ads for an apartment and Claire approached me. She asked if I was looking for a place to stay, and I told her yes. We started chatting and she mentioned that her and her husband Don were looking to move closer to town so they could see their grandkids more. They own the house and she couldn't bear the thought of selling it to anyone, she didn't want to see it changed. So, she offered it to me, with the assurance that I would let them know if I wanted to change anything. I don't have to pay rent, just normal upkeep and utilities."

"That's awesome. They seem like very nice people."

"They are, they've become like grandparents to me, since mine passed."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Colby said genuinely meaning it.

Tasha shrugged with a smile, "Such is life right."

"Ain't that the truth." He smiled back.

* * *

The two spent the rest of the day chatting and telling stories of backstage antics that had their sides splitting. Around 8pm the two stood in the kitchen cooking dinner together, while listening to the bands that Colby had on his phone. Nodding along to the music they bobbed and stretched around each other picking up ingredients and taking turns at the stove.

After they had eaten the two sat down on the couch to watch a movie, they both enjoyed horror flicks so Colby picked out The Howling Reborn on Netflix. Halfway through the movie he smiled as Tasha laid her head on his lap, stretching her legs out along the couch. Unconscious of what he was doing Colby started running his fingers through her long hair, only noticing when Tasha let out a sigh of contentment.

When the movie was over Colby yawned, looking over at the clock which read a little past midnight. Stretching his arms he sighed, "I should head back to the hotel."

Tasha refused to move, she was comfortable and voiced her opinion on the matter with a whine. But she acquiesced, sitting up and stretching her upper body. "You could stay here tonight, Colby."

"Naw, I don't want to impose." He said yawning.

She spied the yawn he tried to hide and shook her head. "No. You're tired, I don't need you falling asleep behind the wheel and dying, I'd miss you. You're staying and that's final."

Colby nodded holding up his hands in surrender. "Okay, fair enough. I know I won't win this argument."

"You're right. You won't." She smiled getting off the couch and disappearing down the hallway. She returned a few minutes later. "I set up the main guest bedroom for you, if you need or want anything just help yourself. My place is your place, Cole."

He smiled as he stood up, one for her choice of his nickname, and two because she was slowly becoming someone he trusted very much, and he never did that lightly. "Thank you." He said leaning down and kissing her forehead.

"You're welcome." She smiled. "I'll see you in the morning."

As she climbed the stairs, Colby paused at the front of the hallway and smiled at her. "You'd really miss me?"

She paused halfway up the staircase, leaning on the rail she looked down at him. "Of course. You're my friend."


End file.
